UMASS/AMHERST 


315Dt,t,DD5fl4LbDH 


Tis 


"•  l^  ir.lf. 


i\'i-:  'i.M", 


f>''t- 


'•  'h 


''Z'    -V'^'r,' 


:':'*-;fin;,y1i:(ii;.: 


Fertilizing  of  Cane  Soil^ 
in  the  Hak^faiian  I^ictnd'S 


■By  J.  T.  CRA  WLEy 


Published  by 

GERMAN  KALI  WORKS. 

95  NassaL\i  Street, 
New  .york. 


UNZ   &  CO.,    PRINTERS,    24   BROADWAY,    NEW  YORK. 


PREFACE. 


The  present  work  is  the  reprint  of  an  article  written  by- 
Professor  J.  T.  Crawley^  formerly  chemist  in  the  Audubon 
Sugar  Experiment  Station  and  Sugar  School  in  Louisiana, 
and  more  recently  assistant  director  of  the  Hawaiian  Sugar 
Experiment  Station  and  latterly  chemist  and  superintendent 
of  the  Hawaiian  Fertilizer  Company,  Honolulu.  It  was 
published  in  the  Louisiana  Planter  and  Sugar  Manufacturer 
on  July  6th,  1901.  The  writer  has  briefly  but  thoroughly 
stated  the  different  matters  relating  to  the  fertilization  of 
sugar  cane. 

The  establishment  of  the  Hawaiian  Experiment  Station 
in  1895  was  a  distinct  step  forward  in  the  sugar  growing 
industry.  The  work  of  this  Station,  and  of  the  Louisiana 
Station,  has  been  largely  towards  spreading  definite  and 
accurate  knowledge  as  to  the  kinds  of  fertilizer  mixtures  to 
to  be  used  on  different  soils  to  give  the  best  results.  Thus, 
it  has  been  found  that  fertilizers  must  be  adapted  to  each 
sugar-growing  district.  A  fertilizer  profitable  in  one  district 
may  not  be  in  another. 

The  writer  has  endeavored  to  point  out  the  most  de- 
sirable mixtures  to  be  used  on  different  kinds  of  soil,  and 
in  covering  these  and  other  points,  the  present  work  treats 
of  subjects  not  found  at  length  in  publications  on  sugar 
planting;  it  is  expected,  therefore,  that  many  of  the  chap- 
ters will  be  read  and  studied  by  all  intelligent  planters  with 
special  interest. 


Fertilizing  of  Cane  Soils 
in  the  Haw^aiian  IslQ^nds 

By  J.  T.  CRAWLEY 

IN  view  of  the  general  belief  that  the  methods  of  fertiliz- 
ing in  the  Hawaiian  Islands  are  as  good  as  obtained  in 
perhaps  any  sugar  country,  and  possibly  better  than  in  any 
other  tropical  country  devoted  to  the  growing  of  sugar,  it 
would  seem  that  it  w^ould  interest  the  readers  of  the 
Louisiana  Planter  to  give  an  account  of  these  methods  to- 
gether with  their  practical  results.  It  would  seem  that  a 
discussion  of  these  methods  would  be  specially  pertinent  at 
this  time,  because  of  the  numerous  tropical  islands  that  we 
have  recently  become  possessed  of,  and  the  paramount 
importance  of  the  sugar  business  in  these  islands.  The 
great  interest  attached  to  the  question  here  is  not  that  we 
have  worked  out  one  method  of  applying  fertilizers  for  cane 
under  all  circumstances,  but  from  the  fact  that  our  soils 
are  so  very  different  the  one  from  the  other,  and  that  the 
climatic  differences  are  so  great  in  going  from  one  district 
to  another,  and  that  each  of  these  problems  has  been  taken 
up  separately  and  attacked  in  a  scientific  way.  The  fertil- 
izer business  has  developed  very  fast  in  recent  years;  the 
kinds  used  and  the  methods  of  application  have  materially 
changed. 

Previous  to,  say,  ten  years  ago  a  great  deal  of  bone  meal 
and  purely  animal  fertilizers,  with  occasional  additions  of 


FERTILIZING    OF    CANE    SOILS 


potash  salts,  were  used.  This  bone  meal  in  many  cases  was 
too  coarse  for  the  plant  to  utilize,  and  was  applied  regard- 
less of  climatic  conditions — in  districts  of  150  inches  of  rain- 
fall per  year  and  in  other  districts  with  but  little  more  than 
20  inches  per  year.  Indeed  in  some  of  these  districts  the 
argument  was  us-ed  that  the  bone  meal  would  permanently 
enrich  the  soil — a  contention  that  is  doubtless  true,  for  it  is 
said  that  this  same  bone  meal  has  been  dug  up  unchanged 
after  lying  in  the  soil  for  three  years  or  more.  A  good 
many  chemical  analyses  by  the  old  methods  were  made  of 
the  soil  by  parties  outside  the  islands,  and  fertilizers  recom- 
mended according  to  the  analyses,  but  the  fertilizers  them- 
selves were  rarely  analyzed.  This  left  the  situation  very 
much  the  same  that  we  found  in  the  states  prior  to  the 
establishment  of  the  various  state  experimental  stations. 
Of  course,  under  these  conditions  the  planters  did  not 
always  get  an  article  up  to  the  guarantee,  nor  yet  an  article 
suited  to  the  conditions. 

Six  or  seven  years  ago  the  Pacific  Guano  and  Fertilizer 
Company  was  formed  in  Honolulu,  for  the  purpose  of 
manufacturing  high  grade  fertilizers,  and  Dr.  Averdam,  a 
German  of  considerable  experience  in  the  phosphate  and 
fertilizer  trade,  was  put  in  charge.  This  marks  the  first 
important  epoch  in  the  development  of  the  business,  as  Dr. 
Averdam  brought  with  him  the  ideas  of  soluble  fertilizers 
that  have  been  worked  out  so  well  both  in  Europe  and  in 
the  United  States.  An  acid  plant  was  erected,  phosphates 
imported  from   Layson  Island  and  manufactured  into  acid 


IN   THE    HAWAIIAN    ISLANDS. 


phosphate.  Most  of  the  fertilizer  now  sold  by  this  com- 
pany contains  its  phosphoric  acid  in  a  water-soluble  form, 
from  dissolved  phosphates,  the  ammonia  from  sulphate  of 
ammonium  and  the  potash  from  muriate  and  sulphate  of 
potash. 

In  1895  the  Hawaiian  Experiment  Station  was  estab- 
lished by  the  Sugar  Planters'  Association,  with  Dr.  Maxwell 
as  director  and  the  writer  as  assistant  director  and  chemist. 
Then  began  a  systematic  examination  of  soils  both  in  place 
and  in  the  laboratory,  together  with  the  collection  of  data 
as  to  rain-fall  and  temperature,  which  has  been  the  basis  of 
much  of  the  fertilizing  that  has  been  (Jonre  since  that  time. 
It  is  not  claimed  here  nor  in  what  is  to  follow,  that  all  im- 
provements in  fertilizing  made  since  1895  are  due  to  the 
investigations  of  the  Experiment  Station  and  its  recom- 
mendations, for  some  plantations  have  not  changed  their 
fertilizers,  while  many  others  have  been  guided  from  with- 
out ;  but  it  is  due,  in  a  greater  measure,  to  these  investiga- 
tions of  the  conditions  of  each  plantation  that  the  fertilizers 
used  in  one  district  are  so  different  now  from  those  used  in 
another  district,  and  that  there  is  a  constant  tendency  to- 
ward high  grade  fertilizers — fertilizers  specially  prepared 
for  the  plantation  where  they  are  to  be  applied. 

Fertilizers  have  been  used  here  for  many  years,  but 
those  used  at  first,  from  necessity  in  an  experimental  way, 
did  not  give  the  satisfaction  that  was  expected.  Raw  bone 
meal,  dissolved  bone  meal,  fish  scrap,  and  fertilizers  con- 
taining a  large   quantity  of  undissolved  phosphates,  were 


O  FERTILIZING    OF    CANE    SOILS 

used  regardless  of  soil  and  climatic  conditions.  The  con- 
sequences were  that  while  in  wet  districts  the  results  were 
often  good,  in  dry  districts  they  were  usually  negative. 
Where  the  results  were  favorable  bone  meal  came  into 
favor,  since  this  was  a  large  ingredient  of  fertilizers.  The 
following  formula  will  represent  many  of  these  fertilizers: 

Phosphoric    acid,    12   to    15    per  cent.,  |  soluble  and 
available. 

Potash,  5  per  cent.,  with  no  guarantee  of  its  source. 

Ammonia,  4  per  cent.,  with  no  guarantee  of  its  source. 

Regardless  of  the  fact  that  very  few  planteis  had  their 
fertilizers  analyzed,  the  above  formula  left  ample  margin 
for  putting  in  inferior  and  unsuitable  ingredients.  We  are 
not  surprised  then  that  hair  and  hoof  meal  were  largely  in 
evidence,  and  that  nitrate  of  soda  was  furnished  in  fertil- 
izers, because  of  its  low  price  in  San  Francisco,  intended 
for  plantations  even  of  150  to  200  inches  of  rain-fall  per 
year.  Examples  of  a  few  districts,  their  present  mode  of 
fertilizing  and  the  reasons  therefore  will  illustrate  the 
subject  of  this  paper. 

IslaLiid  of  HoLwaii. 

Hilo  District.  The  rain-fall  is  very  great,  reaching 
occasionally  200  inches  per  annum.  The  soils  are  com- 
paratively thin,  often  in  the  uplands  being  scarcely  four 
inches  in  depth,  resting  upon  an  impervious  subsoil  from 
a  reddish  to  a  yellow  color.  This  subsoil  is  raw  and  poison 
ous  to  plant  life,  consequently  the  deepening  of  the  staple 


o 

■A 

H 

X 

o 

z 

o 

Q 

W 

r-i 

< 

O 

^ 

^ 

W 

'"' 

C5 

■^ 

<: 

fa 

CkI 

Z 

ux 

o 

fa 

w 

O 

?; 

w 

<r: 

fa 

C) 

« 

w 

i_; 

K 

O 

o 

S 

2 

o 

IN    THE    HAWAIIAN    ISLANDS. 


by  subsoiling  must  be  done  very  slowly  and  carefully.  The 
following  analysis  represents  an  average  of  six  samples 
analyzed  by  the  Hawaiian  Experiment  Station: 


.504^ 

.25  7f^ 
.128^ 


Soils  of  the  Hilo  District — 

Nitrogen,    . 
Phosphoric  Acid, 
Potash, 
Lime, 

These  percentages,  with  the  exception  of  lime,  would 
seem  to  be  satisfactory,  but  it  must  be  remembered  that 
these  are  old  soils  and  the  heavy  rain-fall  tends  to  wash  out 
the  soluble  and  available  elements,  and  leave  the  insoluble 
and  unavailable  elements.  This  is  notably  the  case  with 
lime.  The  lime  content  of  most  Hawaiian  soils  is  high,  but 
in  Hilo  it  has  been  largely  washed  out. 

As  illustrating  this  we  give  below  the  lime  content  of 
Hawaiian  soils  by  districts: 

Hawaii — 


Per  Cent 

Hilo  District 

lime, 

.128 

Hamakua 

District, 

lime. 

.187 

Kohala 

.240 

Kau 

1.090 

Oahu 

.380 

Maui, 

•395 

Kauai, 

.418 

When  we  come  to  consider  the  available  lime  as  deter- 
mined by  any  reliable  method  we  find  that  this  difference 
between   Hilo  and  the  drier   districts   even  more  marked. 


FER'llLlZiNG    OF    CANE    SOILS 


The  following  analyses  were  made  by  the  Aspartic  acid 
method  as  devised  by  the  Hawaiian  Experiment  Station,  to 
determine  the  available  plant  food: 

Available  (pounds  per  acre)  plant  food  in  Hilo  soils — 

Lime,         .         .  174  lbs.  per  acre. 

Potash,       .         .  78     "  " 

Phosphoric  Acid,        29     "  " 

The  lime  shows  the  effects  of  cropping  and  a  large  rain- 
fall. This  same  method  applied  to  many  of  the  soils  of  the 
dry  districts  would  show  an  available  lime  content  of  from 
2,000  to  5,000  pounds  per  acre.  The  land  needs  lime,  and 
in  some  cases  this  is  being  supplied  in  the  form  of  coral 
from  Honolulu,  caustic  lime  from  the  States,  or  in  com- 
mercial fertilizers  as  lime  phosphate  and  gypsum.  Some 
planters  have  applied  lime  without  seeing  any  beneficial 
effects,  but  we  fancy  that  this  is  because  an  immediate 
effect  is  looked  for  as  in  the  case  of  commercial  fertilizers, 
whereas  it  can  only  be  seen  in  a  very  gradual  improvement, 
probably  covering  a  period  of  a  good  many  years. 

Potash.  It  is  only  within  the  past  few  years  that  it 
has  been  proved  that  in  a  great  many  cases  potash  is  de~ 
ficient  in  Hawaiian  soils,  and  there  is  now  a  tendency 
toward  an  increased  use  of  potash.  This  is  notably  the 
case  of  the  Hilo  and  Hamakua  Districts  of  the  island  of 
Hawaii,  where  the  potash  in  the  fertilizers  often  reaches  15 
per  cent,  and  even  higher.  Where  muriate  of  potash  is 
applied  to  the  soil  the  chlorine  unites  with  the  lime,  and 
this  being  soluble,  is  washed  out  by  the  heavy  rains.     This 


IN    THE    HAWAIIAN    ISLANDS. 


would  tend  to  deplete  the  land  of  lime,  and  for  that  reason 
muriate  of  potash  is  not  used  to  any  extent  in  regions  of 
heavy  rain-fall.  Sulphate  of  lime  resulting  from  the  appli- 
cation of  sulphate  of  potash  is  not  so  soluble  and  for  that 
reason  is  now  generally  used. 

Ammonia.  Nitrates,  by  reason  of  their  solubility  and 
tendency  to  wash  out,  evidently  cannot  be  used  with  safety. 
Sulphate  of  ammonium  is  not  open  to  the  same  objections,, 
but  most  of  the  planters  of  Hilo  prefer,  and  we  believe  with 
reason,  to  derive  the  greater  part  of  the  ammonia  from 
organic  material.  Bone  meal  in  past  years  has  been  used 
in  large  quantities,  both  alone  and  in  connection  with  other 
fertilizers.  The  writer  believes  with  Dr.  Maxwell  and  cer- 
tain of  the  plantation  managers,  that  it  is  the  ammonia 
and  not  the  phosphoric  acid  of  the  bone  meal  that  does  the 
greatest  good  to  the  cane.  Following  this  idea  up  we  have 
recommended  that  tankage  and  fish  scrap  containing  a  large 
percentage  of  ammonia  be  used  instead  of  bone  meal.  The 
most  rational  method  of  fertilizing  with  this  article  would 
seem  to  be  the  following: 

Tankage  of  lo  per  cent,  ammonia  and  lo  per  cent, 
phosphoric  acid,  or  ii  per  cent,  ammonia  and  8  per  cent, 
phosphoric  acid  is  applied  in  the  furrow  with  the  seed. 
After  the  cane  is  growing  this  is  followed  up  by  a  top 
dressing  of  a  high  grade  fertilizer  containing  a  large  per- 
centage of  potash  in  the  form  of  sulphate  of  potash,  a 
smaller  quantity  each  of  phosphoric  acid  and  ammonia 
in   readily  available  forms.     In  this  way  the  most  soluble 


lO  FERTILIZING    OF    CANE    SOILS 


part  of  the  fertilizer,  tlie  tankage,  becomes  well  incorpor- 
ated with  the  soil,  and  at  the  roots  of  the  plants  where  it  is 
most  liable  to  be  acted  upon  by  the  plant  acids.  Moreover, 
whatever  particles  of  bone  or  flesh  are  not  taken  up  by  the 
crop  of  plant  cane  is  in  a  position  to  be  taken  up  by  the 
second  or  rattoon  crop.  In  this  way  it  will  be  in  contact 
with  the  roots  of  the  cane  for  two  years  or  more,  and  in 
that  time  all  of  the  available  ingredients  should  b^  utilized. 
The  high  grade  soluble  fertilizer  is  applied  only  to  the 
growing  crop,  and  in  such  condition  as  to  be  taken  up  at 
once.  We  might  add  here  that  this  method  in  a  modified 
form  has  been  tried  on  one  plantation  with  good  results 
and  is  now  being  tried  on  others. 

Hamakua  District.  The  rain-fall,  besides  being  rather 
small  for  a  sugar  crop,  is  very  uncertain.  Some  years  are 
very  dry  while  others  have  ample  rain-fall,  provided  it 
came  at  the  right  seasons.  Occasionally  there  are  very 
heavy  rains  which,  because  of  the  very  porous  condition  of 
the  soil,  would  tend  to  wash  out  all  soluble  ingredients  not 
held  by  the  soil  itself.  Cane  is  planted  all  the  way  from 
near  sea  level  to  1,500  or  2,000  feet  elevation.  The  uplands 
here,  as  in  most  Hawaiian  lands,  have  a  heavier  rain-fall 
than  the  lowlands. 

Hamakua  soils  (Hawaiian  Exp.  Sta.)  average  of  four- 
teen samples: 

Per  Cent. 

Lime,  .         .  .187 

Phosphoric  Acid,  .566 

Potash,        .         .  .264 

Nitrogen,  ,  .572 


IN    THE    HAWAIIAN    ISLANDS.  II 

The  total  potash  is  rather  small  and  the  lime  also.  The 
available  potash  here,  as  in  Hilo,  is  small  and  the  potash 
percentage  in  fertilizers  has  recently  been  increased.  Sul- 
phate of  ammonium  is  used  almost  exclusively  to  furnish  the 
ammonia,  while  nitrate  of  soda,  because  of  the  uncertainty 
of  the  rain-fail,  is  sparingly  used  and  is  not  held  in  much 
esteem.  Fertilizers  used  in  this  district  have  about  the  fol- 
lowing composition  : 

8fo  phosphoric  acid  soluble  and  available. 
8fo  ammonia  from  sulphate  of  ammonia. 
Potash  from  sulphate  of  potash  varying  from  8  to  15 
per  cent. 

On  certain  plantations  fertilizers  have  shown  wonderful 
results.  In  two  well-known  cases  the  yield  of  sugar  has 
recently  increased  from  i  or  2  tons  to  4  or  5  tons  per  acre. 
Indeed  it  is  doubtful  if  some  of  the  Hamakua  plantations 
would  pay  for  cultivation  were  it  not  for  the  large  use  of 
commercial  fertilizers. 

A  peculiar  problem  presents  itself  in  this  district.  Most 
of  the  available  cane  lands  at  a  low  elevation  have  been 
taken  in,  and  the  only  places  where  the  plantations  can 
develop  further  are  in  the  uplands.  These  uplands  are 
covered  with  a  heavy  growth  of  ferns  and  trees,  and  the 
nitrogen  content  of  the  soil  is  high,  usually  over  i  per  cent. 
The  first  crop  of  cane  is  green  and  vigorous,  producing, 
say,  four  or  five  tons  of  sugar  per  acre.  This  seems  to 
exhaust  the  soil  and  the  second  crop  is  very  small;  and  it 
takes  several  years  to  again  produce  a  normal  crop.     This 


12  FERTILIZING    OF    CANE    SOILS 

question  was  presented  to  Professor  Hilgard  by  Andrew 
Moore,  the  manager  of  the  Paauhau  plantation,  and  he 
made  some  very  exhaustive  analyses  of  the  soils.  His 
conclusion  was  that  notwithstanding  the  large  nitrogen 
content,  it  is  so  bound  up  with  the  organic  matter  as  to  be 
practically  unavailable  to  the  plant;  that  the  first  crop 
exhausts  the  soil  of  its  available  nitrogen.  He  recom- 
mended a  small  dose  of  nitrate  of  soda  to  supply  the  avail- 
able nitrogen.  His  conclusions,  we  believe,  have  been 
partially  borne  out  by  results,  though  the  planters  still 
prefer  the  use  of  sulphate  of  ammonium  rather  than  nitrate 
of  soda.  It  is  not  alone  in  Hamakua  that  a  dearth  of 
available  nitrogen  is  seen  in  soils  of  a  high  nitrogen  con- 
tent. It  might  be  said  that  as  a  rule  the  nitrogen  content 
of  Hawaiian  soils  is  rather  high,  as  compared  with  the 
soils  of  other  countries,  and  yet  in  almost  all  cases  the 
application  of  ammonium  compounds  and  organic  matter 
gives  better  results,  and  shows  more  quickly  than  any  other 
fertilizer  ingredient. 

Kohala  District.  The  rain-fall  is  small  and  even  more 
uncertain  than  in  Hamakua,  though  there  are  not  often 
rains  heavy  enough  to  endanger  soluble  fertilizers. 

Kohala  soils: 

Pkr  Cent. 

Lime,         .         .  .240 

Phosphoric  Acid,  .470 

Potash,      .         .  .518 

Nitrogen,  .  .415 


IN    THE    HAWAIIAN    ISLANDS.  I3 

These  lands  are  old  and  poor  in  available  elements,  as 
the  following  table  representing  probably  the  average  of 
available  plant  food,  as  found  by  the  aspartic  acid  method, 
shows. 

Available  elements  in  Kohala  soils: 

Lime,     .         ..      200  to  300  lbs.  per  acre. 
Potash,  .         35  to    75     " 

Phosphoric  Acid,  15  to    20     "         " 

These  figures  are  extremely  small  and  show  the  urgent 
need  of  high  grade  soluble  fertilizers.  Strange  to  say,  cer- 
tain of  the  planters  still  apply  bone  meal,  and  low  grade 
and  comparatively  insoluble  fertilizers,  believing  that  they 
give  as  good  results  as  the  high  grade.  Fertilizers  have 
not  been  very  successful  in  Kohala,  due  largely  to  the 
droughts,  and  we  fancy  also  to  the  kinds  of  fertilizers  used. 
If  there  is  one  district  where  science  would  dictate  the  use 
of  a  soluble  fertilizer  it  is  in  Kohala,  where  there  is  not 
sufficient  rain-fall  to  cause  the  decomposition  of  bone  meal 
and  allied  substances.  Of  late  years  potash  is  being  used 
more  largely,  and  on  at  least  one  plantation  more  soluble 
fertilizers.  Irrigation  plants  are  being  installed,  and  no 
doubt  with  a  control  of  the  water,  fertilizers  will  be  more 
generally  used  and  with  profit  to  the  plantations. 

Oahu.  Almost  all  the  plantations  of  this  island  have 
irrigation  plants.  The  rain-fall  is  small  but  the  supply  of 
water  is  controlled  by  pumps.  On  the  famous  Ewa  plan- 
tation the  ordinary  agricultural  analysis  does  not  show 
marked  quantities  of  phosphoric   acid,  lime,    nitrogen    and 


14  FERTILIZING   OF    CANE    SOILS 

potash.  Most  of  the  soil,  however,  is  a  washed  soil,  finely 
divided  and  very  deep.  The  method  of  fertilizing  there  is 
different  from  most  places.  Soon  after  the  crop  begins  to 
grow  it  is  given  a  top  dressing  of  a  high  grade  soluble 
fertilizer  and  this  is  followed  up  by  one  or  two  dressings  of 
nitrate  of  soda,  and  another  of  fertilizer.  A  few  years  ago 
the  fertilizer  contained 

8^  available  phosphoric  acid. 
y^fo  potash  from  sulphate  of  potash. 
6^^  ammonia  from   three  sources,    nitrate    of    soda, 
sulphate  of  ammonium  and  organic. 

Both  the  potash  and  ammonia  were  afterwards  increased 
and  the  phosphoric  acid  decreased.  At  the  present  time  all 
of  the  ammonia  is  derived  from  nitrate  of  soda  and  sulphate 
of  ammonium,  and  most  of  the  phosphoric  acid  from  water- 
soluble  phosphates.  This  is  that  the  fertilizer  may  be 
soluble  in  water  of  irrigation.  Labor  on  the  plantations  is 
scarce  and  more  expensive  than  formerly,  and  every  labor- 
saving  method  possible  must  be  used.  The  fertilizer  is 
applied  in  the  cane  rows  and  followed  up  by  irrigation 
water  which  dissolves  the  fertilizer  and  carries  it  down  to 
the  roots  of  the  cane.  In  this  way  no  labor  is  required  to 
cover  the  fertilizer  as  was  formerly  the  case.  The  enor- 
mous yields  of  Ewa  are  made  possible  by  the  extreme  depth 
of  the  soil,  and  the  large  quantities  of  manures  used.  There 
is  not  the  danger  of  losing  the  nitrate  of  soda  that  there 
would  be  were  the  soil  of  less  depth. 

On  other  plantations  of  the  island  nitrates  are  used 
but  not  to  the  same  extent,  and  the  high  grade  fertilizers 


IN    THE    HAWAIIAN    ISLANDS.  15 

contain  both  sulphate  of  ammonium  and  organic  ammonia. 
The  following  will  represent  about  an  average  formula  for 
use  on  an  irrigation  plantation: 

Fertilizers  used  on  Oahu — 

7  to  Sfo  phosphoric  acid  soluble  and  available. 

8  to  lo^  potash  from  sulphate  of  potash. 

7  to  8^  ammonia,  J   each   from   nitrate   of  soda,   sul- 
phate of  ammonium  and  organic. 

Chemical  analysis  shows  rather  a  lower  content  of  nitro- 
gen in  the  soils,  and  ammonium  compounds  give  very  good 
results. 

Maui.  Most  of  the  plantations  of  Maui  are  situated  in 
or  near  a  broad  plain  that  divides  the  two  parts  of  the 
island,  and  are  subject  to  approximately  the  same  weather 
conditions,  though  the  soils  differ  from  each  other  very 
essentially.  As  in  other  districts,  no  analysis  can  be  given 
to  represent  the  whole  district,  yet  for  purpose  of  compari- 
son we  give  an  average  of  a  number  of  analyses: 

Soils  of  Maui,  near  Wailuku — 

Per  Cent. 

Phosphoric  acid,  .270 

Lime,         .         .  .295 

Potash,       .         .  .357 

Nitrogen,  .  .388 

There  is  nothing  unusual  in  these  percentages;  the 
nitrogen  is  rather  low,  and  none  of  the  percentages  are 
very  high.  All  of  the  plantations  in  or  near  this  plain  are 
irrigated  plantations,  the  rain-fall  being  very  small.  Most 
of   the    plantations    use   ammonia    from    the    three    forms,. 


l6  FERTILIZING    OF    CANE    SOILS 

nitrate,  sulphate  and  organic;  potash  from  sulphate  of 
potash,  and  phosphoric  acid  from  solubles  phosphates. 
Here  again  the  phosphoric  acid  in  the  fertilizers  has  been 
materially  reduced,  and  the  potash  and  ammonia  propor- 
tionately increased.  At  Spreckelsville  the  management 
formerly  used  large  quantities  of  fish  scrap  and  fertilizers 
carrying  a  large  quantity  of  phosphoric  acid,  but  since  the 
plantation  has  changed  ownership,  approximately  the  same 
methods  of  fertilizing  have  been  adopted  which  have  given 
such  good  results  at  other  places.  Most  of  the  plantations 
under  consideration  are  under  one  management,  and  the 
most  intelligent  attempt  has  been  made  to  fertilize  in  a 
scientific  manner  that  has  as  yet  been  made  anywhere  in 
this  territory.  Analyses  of  the  various  fields  have  been 
made  to  determine  the  available  plant  food.  These  large 
fields  being  comparatively  uniform  in  composition,  it  is 
possible  to  get  samples  representing  a  number  of  acres. 
From  these  analyses  different  fertilizers  are  recommended 
and  used  for  the  different  fields. 

To    illustrate,    we   give    a   few    analyses  of  these  soils, 
together  with  the  fertilizers  used: 

Maui  soils,  available  elements  per  acre. 

A.  B.  C. 

lbs.  lbs.  lbs. 

Lime,                 1,619  5>o4o  6,808 

Potash,              1,425  1,443  ^94 

Phos.  Acid,           27  20  136 

Lime  is  ample  in  all  the  samples,  phosphoric  acid  is  low, 
the  potash  varying  between  quite  wide  limits.    The  nitrogen, 


D. 

E. 

lbs. 

lbs. 

4,344 

6,618 

1,097 

2,193 

30 

34 

IN    THE    HAWAIIAN    ISLANDS.  17 

while  not  given  here  is  tolerably  constant,  and  the  fertil- 
izers used  would  be  about  as  follows: 

A.  and  B, 

8^  phosphoric  acid  soluble  and  available. 

8^  ammonia,  |  from  nitrate,  |  from  sulphate  and 
organic. 

8^  potash  from  sulphate  of  potash. 

C. 

7^  phosphoric  acid,  soluble  and  available. 
8fo  ammonia  as  above. 
lofo  potash  from  sulphate. 

D. 

gfc  phosphoric  acid,  soluble  and  available. 
8^  ammonia  as  above. 
8^  potash  from  sulphate. 

E. 

8^  phosphoric  acid,  soluble  and  available. 
Sfo  ammonia  as  above. 
5^  potash  from  sulphate. 
A  neighboring  plantation  whose  soil  shows  a  lower  pot- 
ash than  any  of  the  above  is  using  a  fertilizer  containing 
II    per   cent,    potash,    while    occasionally  the    ammonia  is 
increased  if  any  special  circumstances  warrant  the  same. 
Special  dressings  of  nitrate  of  soda,  and  occasionally  nitrate 
and  ground  coral,  are  applied. 

The  plantations  on  Kauai,  with  a  few  exceptions,  do  not 
present  problems  very  different  from  those  already  men- 
tioned. One  plantation  uses  two  kinds  of  fertilizers,  one 
for  plant  cane  and  another  for  rattoon;  for  the  former  a 
high  grade  soluble  fertilizer,  applied  in  liberal  quantities, 


iS  FERTILIZING    OF    CANE    SOILS 

and  for  the  latter  a  mixture  of  muriate  of  potash,  nitrate  of 
soda  and  ground  coral.  The  soil  is  somewhat  deficient  in 
lime,  hence  the  coral;  and  the  manager  uses  the  nitrate 
with  the  rattoon  crop  for  the  purpose  of  stimulating  the 
growth  of  the  cane,  believing  that  in  this  way  whatever 
fertilizer  applied  to  the  plant  cane  the  year  before  is  not 
taken  up  by  the  cane,  will  be  used  by  this  second  crop. 
Theoretically,  this  is  an  economical  method  of  fertilizing, 
but  the  writer  has  recommended  an  application  of  a  high 
grade  fertilizer  to  the  rattoon  crop  on  the  other  plantations 
following  this  method,  where  the  soil  shows  any  signs  of 
becoming  depleted. 

Special  Cases.  The  seasons  and  existing  conditions 
often  determine  the  fertilizer  to  be  applied  For  instance, 
in  one  case  a  fertilizer  was  wanted  in  July  for  a  cane  to 
come  off  the  following  season.  This  is  later  than  fertilizers 
are  usually  applied,  but  the  cane  needed  a  stimulant. 
Evidently  whatever  fertilizer  was  to  be  applied,  should  be 
readily  available,  and  the  following  formula  was  used: 

12^  phosphoric  acid,  soluble  and  available,  from  double 
super-phosphate. 

lofo  potash,  from  sulphate  of  potash. 

i2fo  ammonia,    6^   from    nitrate,    6^0   from    sulphate    of 

ammonium. 

Where  the  fertilizer  is  to  be  applied  with  the  seed,  a 

little  more  insoluble  form  can  be  used  than  when  it  is  to  be 

applied  as  a  top  dressing,  and  fertilizers  applied  early  in 

the  season  a  little  more  insoluble  than  those  to  be  applied 


IN    THE    HAWAIIAN   ISLANDS.  1 9 

later,  since  the  crop  has  a  longer  time  to  grow  and  utilize 
the  food. 

Of  the  forms  of  potash,  sulphate  has  the  decided  prefer- 
ence among  the  planters.  Why  this  is  so,  I  am  unable  to 
say,  or  whether  the  preference  is  founded  on  facts  or  on 
prejudice.  There  is  very  little  difference  between  the  price 
of  sulphate  and  muriate,  a. slight  advantage  being  with  the 
muriate.  My  own  advice  has  usually  been  for  the  use  of 
sulphate.  In  some  cases  the  excessive  rain-fall  necessitates 
the  use  of  sulphate,  and  in  a  few  cases  there  is  a  large 
quantity  of  salt,  or  chloride  of  sodium,  either  in  the  soil  or 
water,  or  in  both;  and  in  these  cases  it  is  safer  to  use  the 
sulphate.  Since  there  is  very  little  difference  in  the  price, 
it  is  probably  a  good  and  safe  practice  to  use  that  form  in 
which  there  can  be  the  least  danger. 

Sandy  Soils.  There  are  many  patches  of  so-called 
''sandy  soils,"  some  of  them  quite  extensive,  on  the  planta- 
tions and  they  require  special  treatment.  The  writer  has 
had  this  problem  presented  a  number  of  times,  and  it 
furnished  the  subject  for  a  little  chemical  investigation, 
the  results  of  which  were  published  in  the  Hawaiian 
Planters'  Monthly  for  February,  1901.  This  sand  is  com- 
posed of  fine  particles  of  coral,  in  which  there  is  incorpo- 
rated more  or  less  of  soil  and  organic  debris.  It  is  quite 
porous  and  for  that  reason  difficult  to  irrigate.  The  water 
passes  through  the  porous  coral  very  readily  and  the  rows, 
or  irrigating  trenches,  have  to  be  very  short.  The  investi- 
gation had  for  its  object  the  determination  of  the  retentive 


20  FERTILIZING    OF   CANE    SOILS 


power  of  such  soil  both  for  water  and  for  chemicals,  soils 
of  varying  quantities  of  coral  being  used  in  the  tests.  It 
was  proved,  as  was  expected,  that  the  soils  containing  above 
80  per  cent,  of  coral  sand  have  very  feeble  retentive  power, 
both  for  water  and  for  salts.  Nitrate  of  soda,  muriate  of 
potash,  and  to  a  certain  extent,  sulphates  of  potash  and 
ammonium,  being  washed  out  by  waters  of  irrigation. 
Phosphates  are  readily  retained  owing  to  the  lime  content 
of  the  coral  sand.  It  was  recommended  that  phosphates, 
blood,  sulphate  of  potash  (and  sulphate  of  ammonium  in 
small  quantities)  be  used,  and  this  recommendation  is  be- 
ing carried  out  both  on  the  Kahuku  and  Kihei  plantations. 
Both  of  these  plantations  now  use  two  different  formulas, 
one  for  the  rich  red  soil  and  the  other  for  the  sandy  soil. 

In  conclusion,  it  might  be  stated  that  the  general  ten- 
dency is  toward  the  use  of  more  soluble  fertilizers,  a  larger 
quantity  of  potash  and  ammonium  compounds  and  less 
phosphoric  acid,  especially  when  in  the  form  of  bones  or 
undissolved  phosphates.  The  planter  sees  that  the  freight 
on  a  ton  of  low  grade  fertilizer  is  the  same  as  on  a  ton  of 
high  grade,  and  being  so  far  away  from  the  sources  of  sup- 
ply it  is  economy  to  use  the  most  concentrated  goods. 

These  changes  have  been  followed  by  splendid  results. 
It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  the  yield  of  sugar  per  acre  has 
enormously  increased  during  the  past  few  years.  Six  years 
ago  the  average  for  the  islands  was  6,300  pounds  of  sugar 
per  acre,  while  now  it  is  four  and  a  half  tons  per  acre.  Of 
course,  a  more  careful  cultivation,  and  great  improvements 


a 

z; 

< 

■^ 

D 

■J> 

- 

2 

Z 

o 

a 

r-i 

i5 

< 

: ) 

N 

W 

■"? 

2£ 

1— 1 

a. 

H 

ai 

z 

« 

— 

to 

tq 

&H 

Z 

n 

<* 

U 

:n 

< 

M 

< 

i^ 

s 

< 

IN    THE    HAWAIIAN    ISLANDS.  21 

in  mills  have  added  their  part  in  this  improvement;  and  we 
must  not  forget  that  the  alert,  intelligent  management  of 
the  plantations,  which  is  at  the  very  foundation  of  the  re- 
cent enhanced  values  of  the  sugar  properties,  has  made  it 
possible  for  these  increased  yields.  But  certainly,  after  all 
is  said  commercial  fertilizers  pay  for  themselves  many 
times  over. 

METHODS    OF   SOIL  ANALYSIS. 

The  ordinary  agricultural  analysis  is  still  used,  and, 
with  a  careful  interpretation,  gives  indications  of  the  needs 
of  the  soil.  The  aspartic  acid  of  the  Hawaiian  Experiment 
Station  is  also  quite  often  used,  and  seems  to  give  good 
indications  of  the  condition  of  availability  of  the  potash 
and  lime.  But  it  is  doubtful  if  the  method  is  applicable  to 
phosphoric  acid.  According  to  the  method  there  are 
extremely  small  quantities  of  available  phosphoric  acid  in 
any  of  our  soils,  which  comports  with  our  belief  that  it  is 
locked  up  with  the  tetanium  and  iron  and  aluminum  ;  and 
yet  the  applications  of  phosphoric  acid  have  not  been 
attended  by  a  large  increase  of  sugar.  Indeed,  as  has 
already  been  stated,  the  tendency  is  to  decrease  rather  than 
to  increase  this  element  in  commercial  fertilizers. 

The  quantity  of  fertilizers  applied  per  acre  varies  con- 
siderably. The  average  is  probably  800  to  1,000  pounds 
per  acre,  while  in  cases  it  varies  from  500  to  1,500  pounds 
per  acre.  This,  it  is  to  be  remembered,  is  in  addition  to 
whatever  nitrate  is  applied,  which  is  looked  upon  as  a 
stimulant. 


22  FERTILIZING    OF    CANE    SOILS 

Nothing  thus  far  has  been  said  concerning  the  elements 
withdrawn  by  the  crop  from  the  soil,  and  it  would  seem 
that  our  methods  of  fertilizing  do  not  take  this  into  account. 
It  has  long  been  a  favored  theory  with  agriculturalists  that 
we  should  return  the  exact  quantities  of  elements  that  are 
withdrawn  by  one  crop,  and  chemists  have  been  to  great 
pains  and  expense  to  analyze  all  agricultural  plants  with  a 
view  to  compounding  for  each  crop  a  ferlilizer  that  will 
supply  this  drain.  Looked  at  casually,  this  seems  to  be  a 
correct  theory,  but  it  does  not  bear  close  investigation.  It 
does  not  take  into  account  the  fact  that  the  elements  in  the 
soil  are  not  available  in  the  exact  ratio  of  their  removal  by 
the  crops,  and  that  the  rocks  are  being  disintegrated  con- 
stantly and  yielding  up  plant  food  in  very  different  ratios 
in  different  places.  A  consideration  of  the  chemical  com- 
position of  Hawaiian  lavas  from  which  the  soils  are  derived 
will  show  this. 

Lime  in  Hawaiian  lavas  (see  Maxwell :  Soils  and  Lavas.) 

Non-hydrous  lavas,         -  9.24^ 

Hydrous  lavas,        -         -         8.23^ 

Tufas,     -         -         -         -  1.41,^ 

Evidently  the  resulting  soils  would  differ  very  materially 

in  their  content  of  lime,  and  any  system  of  supplying  lime 

to  the  soil  that  does  not  take  these  differences  into  account 

is  wrong.     Likewise  the  potash  and  phosphoric  acid  differ 

very  essentially  in  these  rocks  and  consequently  in  the  soils. 

Again,  the  rain    percolating   through    the    soil    carries    off 

these    elements   in    very    different    proportion.       Maxwell  : 


IN   THE    HAWAIIAN    ISLANDS.  23 

Lavas  and  Soils,  page  164,  says  :  "In  the  passing  over  of 
lavas  into  soils  there  have  been  removed  8  tons  (89^)  out  of 
every  9  tons  of  lime;  -|  ton  {ssfc)  out  of  every  i^  tons  of 
potash." 

The  resultant  condition  of  the  soil,  say  in  Hilo,  where 
the  rain-fall  is  200  inches  per  year,  percolating  through  the 
soil  and  carrying  off  lime  and  potash  would  be  very  different 
from  Ewa  plantation  where  there  is  very  little  rain-fall  and 
where  each  million  gallons  of  water  with  which  the  planta- 
tion is  irrigated  carries  with  it  400  pounds  lime,  80 
pounds  potash  and  14  pounds  phosphoric  acid.  In  12 
different  samples  of  soil  collected  by  the  Hawaiian  Experi- 
ment Station  from  11  plantations,  the  available  lime  varied 
from  105  to  983  lbs.  per  acre  ;  potash  varied  from  30  to  588 
lbs.  per  acre  ;  phosphoric  acid  varied  from  to  to  S6  lbs.  per 
acre. 

If  the  exact  amount  of  lime,  phosphoric  acid  and  potash 
that  one  crop  removes  were  sufficient  for  the  poorest  of 
these  soils,  a  very  much  smaller  quantity  would  suffice  for 
the  richest. 

The  rain-fall  is  a  very  much  more  powerful  agent  in 
depleting  the  soil  of  its  soluble  ingredients  in  wet  districts 
than  is  cropping,  nevertheless  an  examination  of  the 
elements  removed  by  cropping  will  show  that  our  fertilizers 
tend  in  the  right  direction. 

According  to  the  bulletin  of  the  Experiment  Station  for 
1900  the  Rose  Bamboo  cane  removes  each  year  for  each  ton 
of  sugar  produced : 


24  FERTILIZING   OF    CANE    SOILS 

13.6  lbs.  phosphoric  acid, 
1 14.2  lbs.  potash, 
34  8  lbs.  lime, 
40.5  lbs.  nitrogen, 
or  for  a  crop  of  ten  tons  per  acre  : 
136  lbs.  phosphoric  acid, 
1,142  lbs.  potash, 
348  lbs   lime, 
405  lbs.  nitrogen. 

The  amount  of  potash  removed  is  enormous  and  to 
replace  this  would  require  more  than  a  ton  of  the  com- 
mercial sulphate.  The  nitrogen  also  is  quite  high,  while 
there  is  a  comparatively  small  quantity  of  phosphoric  acid. 
This  comports  with  the  present  practice  of  an  increase  of 
the  potasli  and  nitrogen  and  decrease  of  the  phosphoric 
acid  in  commercial  fertilizers. 


V-.ImS 


.■'.H' 


